Matthew Hancock: This schedule is the reformed electronic communications code, which is to be inserted into the Communications Act 2003. The debate we have just  had on clause 4, which repeals the previous code, explains precisely why the new code is important. This is all about making sure that the law is up to date. The code was established by the 1984 Act and has not been substantively amended since then. The legal framework just has not kept pace with rapid changes. Our debate on clause 4 demonstrates why it is important to get  this right.
The revised code forms part of a series of measures to improve this country’s communications infrastructure. We have worked closely with the devolved Administrations to make sure that the code will work effectively in all jurisdictions. The code has 17 parts, each dealing with the rights and responsibilities of site providers and operators, and I will quickly go through each part.
Part 1 is about the concepts in the code, including some of the definitions. Part 2 sets out how code rights are conferred and on whom they are binding. Part 3 sets out the automatic rights to assign code rights and addresses the upgrading and sharing of apparatus. Part 4 sets out the circumstances in which a court can impose an agreement where one cannot be reached between the parties—that is a crucial element of the code—including the procedures to be followed in such circumstances.
Parts 5 and 6 address how parties can bring an agreement to an end and how landowners can have apparatus removed. Parts 7 to 10 address the regime in place for land that requires distinct treatment due to its particular characteristics, such as transport land. Parts 11 and 12 provide rights for third parties to object to apparatus. Part 13 addresses the right to lop trees. Parts 14 and 15 make provision for compensation notices under the code. Part 16 provides for enforcement and dispute resolution, and it introduces the power for the Secretary of State to make regulations to transfer jurisdiction on code cases to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber). Lastly, part 17 contains supplementary provisions, including on general interpretation, and addresses the definition of “land.”
The crucial reason for the changes is that part 2 is structured to underpin consensual agreements for code rights. As we discussed, consensual agreements are important, but, where agreement cannot be reached, part 4 means that a court has the power to impose code rights against a site provider in favour of an operator. The court can calculate the price an operator should pay a site provider for code rights.
The new code, in recognition of not only the need for communications but the clear importance of digital communications to the economy, seeks to limit the cost of deployment. Paragraph 23 introduces a “no scheme” basis of evaluation to ensure that land is assessed not at the value to the operator but at the value to the landowner. Any potential savings made by wireless infrastructure providers under the new land valuation should be passed through to network operators.
Part 5 introduces clear and efficient rules and procedures for terminating, renewing or modifying agreements when existing agreements come to an end. A key innovation is that agreements will continue in force, even after expiry, until terminated or renegotiated to give greater security of apparatus for the operator and greater security of income to the landowner. It is essential that that is all  underpinned by an efficient and expert forum for dispute resolution. The new code enables the jurisdiction disputes to be transferred in Scotland and Northern Ireland to specialist land tribunals and in England and Wales to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber). Specialist expertise here is important. Ensuring effective broadband and mobile coverage is critical and the code provides a modern and rigorous legal foundation for the roll-out of apparatus.

Matthew Hancock: I am very grateful for the Opposition’s support of the reforms to the way that spectrum is allocated. Spectrum is a finite asset and it is incredibly important that our digital communications, and especially wireless communications, increase so that we make best use of it. It is very good to see cross-party recognition of the importance of that management and that Ofcom play an excellent role in adjudicating on this.
I shall take the hon. Lady’s second specific question on the EU first. Of course we will continue discussions with neighbours about allocations. Ultimately, there are many spectrum frequencies that are dealt with on a global basis, for instance, those that are used in aviation. It is therefore important that we have international discussions, both in the EU and around the rest of the world. I can assure the hon. Lady that those discussions and that collaboration will continue. Indeed, some of it is going on as we speak.
On the hon. Lady’s first point about watering down the penalties, the way in which this is structured does not require a penalty, in case there are reasons not to have one, but allows for penalties. I think that gives Ofcom the necessary wiggle room, should it need it.

Louise Haigh: The amendments all explicitly include on-demand programme services in the age verification measures proposed by the Government. Given the rise in the use of mobile devices and tablets in the past decade, the case for appropriate online pornography enforcement has increased. We commend the Government’s intention in the proposals. I also put on record our thanks and congratulations to the hon. Member for Devizes, who has campaigned on this issue for many years along with many other hon. Members, not least my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol West.
The ultimate goal is to seek parity of protection for children between the online and offline worlds, but how that is done in practice is fraught with issues. I hope that we can improve the proposals before us. Teens have an emerging right to independent communication with friends and family, and we recognise and respect that. We must not fall back on outdated means of protection such as blanket parental permissions. We need to empower and protect young people in ways that make sense to them and that they can and will use.
As the Committee knows, the effects of online pornography on unhealthy attitudes to sex and relationships are only just starting to be explored, but the research indicates a troubling trend. The NSPCC study of more than 1,000 young people aged 11 to 18 found that over half the sample had been exposed to online pornography, and nearly all of that group—94%—had seen it by age 14. Just over half the boys believed that the pornography that they had seen was realistic, and a number of girls said that they worried about how it would make boys see girls and the possible impact on attitudes to sex and relationships. One respondent said:
“Because you don’t get taught how to go on the internet and keep yourself safe, there are loads of tricks to get you to give away or to go on a bad website.”
Crucially, in research by Barnardo’s, four fifths of teenagers agreed that it was too easy for young people to see pornography online by accident.
Adult products and spaces, including gambling shops, sex shops and nightclubs, are restricted in the offline sphere. Contents such as film and television, advertising and pornography are all also limited, with penalties ranging from fines to custodial sentences available to discharged proprietors who do not comply. It is a transparent, accountable process overseen by regulators and licence operators such as Ofcom, the BBFC and the Gambling Commission to ensure that children are protected from age-inappropriate content and experiences.
Labour is happy to support the Government’s efforts to introduce age verification, but we must ensure that enforcement is strong enough. Our amendment speaks to that broad aim of the Opposition, which I know is  supported by Government Back Benchers, given the other amendments tabled today. However, the measure cannot be seen as a silver bullet, which is why tacking this manifesto commitment on to a Digital Economy Bill is inadequate. First, slotting it into a Bill on the digital economy gives the impression, however unintentional, that the measure is designed to deal only with commercial providers of pornography, those who exploit data or benefit from advertising or subscription services—those who are, in short, part of the digital economy, rather than all providers of pornography online.
Although we are aware that most pornography providers operate on a commercial basis, many do not. Peer-to-peer networks and Usenet groups, however difficult to police, would presumably not be in the scope of the Bill. That is on top of pornography available through apps that are commercial enterprises, such as Twitter and Tumblr, or free webpages, such as WordPress, where the provision of pornography is incidental or provides no income to the overall business, or is not used for commercial purposes at all. Under clause 15 as it stands, it is by no means clear that all pornography available on the internet will be subject to age verification requirements.
Allow me to remind the Minister what the Conservative party manifesto said on the matter in 2015. It stated that
“we will stop children’s exposure to harmful sexualised content online, by requiring age verification for access to all sites containing pornographic material”.
There is no prevarication or equivocation there, and I commend the wording in the manifesto. Unfortunately, between that time and the legislation being drawing up, a rogue adjective has been added to the commitment, which seemed perfectly clear in the manifesto. Once could easily argue that if a site such as Tumblr does not make pornography available on a commercial basis, then it is exempt, which would leave that manifesto commitment in some difficulty. Can we therefore have a commitment from the Minister that the regulator will be able to go after all sites containing pornographic material and not just those operating on a commercial basis, however broadly we may want to define “commercial”? The word seems at best unnecessary, and at worst a breach of the manifesto commitment.
Slotting age verification into the Bill gives Members nothing like the scope needed to tackle the effect of under-age viewing of pornography, which is surely the intention behind its implementation, because the measure is not enough to protect children. For a start, the regulator should also be responsible for ensuring that services undertake self-audits and collect mandatory reports in relation to child abuse images, online grooming and malicious communication involving children. To ensure that services are working to consistent principles and to best support the collection and utilisation of data, the regulator should also be responsible for developing a definition of child abuse.
We need to improve reporting online. Children and young people are ill served by the currently inadequate and unreliable reporting systems when they experience online abuse. Reporting groups need to be standardised, visible, responsive and act rapidly to address issues. Every reporting group must be designed in ways children say they can and will use. The NSPCC found that 26% of children and young people who used the report  button saw no action whatever taken in response to their complaint; and of those who did get a response, 16% were dissatisfied with it. The Government should include independent mediation and monitoring of responses to complaints.
Clearly, we need compulsory sex education in our schools. Compulsory age-appropriate lessons about healthy relationships and sex are vital to keeping children safe on and offline. We know that children are exposed to pornography, sometimes in an extreme or violent form. Alongside regulation to limit access to these materials, building resilience and instilling an early understanding of healthy relationships can help to mitigate the impact of that exposure.
On that point, we are incredibly keen to ensure that legislation is as clear as possible and that any potential loopholes are closed. One such loophole is clause 15(5)(a), which for reasons that are unclear excludes on-demand programme services. Explicitly excluding any on-demand programme service available on the internet in the Bill—although we are aware that they are regulated by Ofcom—risks on-demand programme services being subject to a much looser age verification requirement than the Bill would enforce on other pornography providers. We do not believe that the legislation intends to create two standards of age verification requirements for online content, regardless of whether it is separately regulated. The amendment is intended to close that loophole.